Pretty Lethal (2026): When Ballet Turns Brutal
You've heard the phrase “If looks could kill,” but have you heard “If dancing could kill?” Pretty Lethal takes that idea and runs with it.

An African American couple (Winfield and Alice) adopt two orphans from a Vietnamese refugee camp. After 22 years, the children are reunited with their birth mother, bringing deeply submerged resentments and misconceptions to the surface, and forcing the characters to reexamine their identity and relationships in both comical and poignant situations.
You've heard the phrase “If looks could kill,” but have you heard “If dancing could kill?” Pretty Lethal takes that idea and runs with it.
The second film takes us on Peter's journey to be understood.
She is being made to justify why she doesn’t believe he’s a feminist, instead of him having to justify his choice to claim he is one.
The differences in these films could not be more blatant, and yet Gus Van Sant has found a way to portray the same messages and use the same techniques in each.
SPOILERS AHEAD. Premature is a story about the pain of love and realities. Transitioning from youth to our perspective of adulthood, how do we grapple with loss?
Striving for validation. Let’s be frank….we ALL want to be successful. Whatever we put our efforts into, ideally it is to make it culminate in the best possible results across the board, especially when it comes to what career path we are pursuing. We WANT to excel, to shine, to advance, to be acknowledged. AND…let’s hope that we also wish to better everyone around us to boot. However, what occurs when those whom we initially put our trust in suddenly become a burden instead of a boon? Do we falter under the weight of rejection? Or STAND UP for WHO WE ARE?